Us Against the World
by mashimoshi
Summary: After the destruction of the Alexandria Safe Zone, Daryl and Carol were separated and were living on their own for a few months. But they finally find each other, and Daryl soon finds out that Carol wasn't really alone out there like he thought. Now, it's up to them to figure out what to do next, as well as face the new challenges that await them.
1. Chapter One:

**Hello there! I'm finally back! I really hope that you will enjoy this story. Please don't forget to follow, favorite, and review! I will try my best to update this story as much as I can, but I can't promise anything :)**

**Like I said, please enjoy!**

**-M**

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Chapter One:

It has been two months since Alexandria was burned to the ground.

Two months since Daryl's home was destroyed and family torn away from him. Two months since he was separated from the love of his life, Carol. Two months since his world completely fell apart.

During these two months, he was on his own, trying hard to survive alone. It was difficult. Sure, he knew exactly how to feed himself and keep himself warm and fight off walkers, but it wasn't easy not having Carol by his side. He missed her, missed her smile, missed her teasing, missed everything about her. Everyday, he remembered how that group of men had attacked Alexandria and set it on fire. He remembered how, just before they were separated, he promised Carol that he would find her no matter what. But no matter how much he searched for her, Daryl just couldn't locate her, and it killed him each time he was unsuccessful.

Currently, Daryl was making his way back to camp from a hunt. It had started to rain - pretty heavily, too, making it tricky for him to see what where he was going. He was walking along an abandoned highway, soaked to the bone, when the tracker stopped to the sound of rustling bushes, worry seeping into his heart. But when he turned around, a gasp escaped his mouth, and tears began filling his tired eyes.

It was Carol.

She was standing only a couple of feet away from him, a squirrel in her hand. She looked beautiful, even with the water dripping down her face. She was staring at him, taking in every part of his battered body.

Finally, Daryl took action. Without thinking, he dropped his crossbow and rushed towards her, pulling her to his chest and enveloping her in a desperate hug. Tremors started to make their way up his spine as he realized that she was hugging him back. He began to sob, so many bottled up emotions coming to life. The embrace lasted for minutes, neither of them quite ready to let go yet.

Suddenly, the rain was gone, replaced by sunlight shining down on them, warming their broken hearts for the first time in months.

When Daryl did pull away, all he could do was just look at her and take her in. He still couldn't believe this was happening. Unable to help it, he crashed his mouth over hers, having missed this feeling so much. "I told ya I'd find ya," he said brokenly, resting his forehead against his own.

"I never had a doubt," Carol replied, kissing him again. "Do you have a camp?" she asked.

Nodding, Daryl replied, "Yeah. It's by the lake. No good for the rain, though. Have everythin' I need right here, anyways." He paused, letting out a heavy breath. "Who else made it out?"

"After I got out, I searched for survivors," Carol began to explain, cupping his face. "On the second day, I found Judith, alone, a couple of miles away. When I asked her where her parents were, she said she didn't know. She's back at the cabin we found, safe." A small smile graced her lips when she saw his eyes widen. "Come on. Let me take you there."

About a half hour later - which involved them walking hand in hand, unable to let go of one another - they arrived at a tiny little hut, one similar to where Daryl and Beth stayed all those years ago. The minute the door opened, and Carol announced herself, Judith came running towards them, a happy smile on her face. "Uncle Da-wal!" she cried in excitement, lunging right at him.

Daryl wasted no time in picking her up and wrapping his arms around her, having missed the feeling of this little bundle of joy. "Hey, Lil' Asskicker," he said softly, pressing a gentle kiss to her temple.

"Auntie Ca-wal told me you would come!"

A little surprised by her words, the tracker turned around to look at Carol, who just smiled. "Did she now?" he murmured, and reached out to pull her into this strange hug. The three of them were there for a while, just trying to get their brains to understand that this was real. Soon enough, though, little Judith had enough, and she began wiggling out of Daryl's strong embrace. In return, Daryl put her down and watched as she ran towards the small pile of toys she had by the couch. "God, Carol, how did you do this?" he asked in amazement.

"It's not much," Carol replied, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head against his shoulder as they watched Judith play. "I found her two days after it happened. She was hungry, and crying for her parents. Then a little while later, we found the cabin. We just cleaned it up, and then made it our own. I went out on runs, taught her what to do when she was alone, and brought anything we can use back here. I just didn't expect to find anyone out there, even though I knew that you would come back to me someday."

"Damn right," Daryl agreed. Slowly, he raised her chin up with his index finger and leaned forward. As they kissed, memories of everything that he had been through in the past two months seemed to go away, leaving him with the present, which to him was a blessing.

When they - unfortunately- pulled away, Carol looked him over for a second and said, "Are you hungry? I have some energy bars you can eat."

"Nah, I'm alright. I'd rather help you cook that squirrel."

"Sounds like a plan."

They ended up eating on the small, but comfortable, couch. When they finished, it was Judith who offered to put their dishes away, something that truly surprised Daryl. It made him briefly wonder if this was how Carol raised Sophia.

"What do we have to say to your uncle, Judith?" the woman asked as she handed the girl the plates.

Smiling brightly, Judith exclaimed, "Thank you Uncle Da-wal!"

"Yeah…," Carol agreed, interlocking their fingers together. "Thank you, Uncle Daryl."

Daryl chuckled and shook his head. "I should be thankin' you," he muttered, and kissed her again, never wanting their lips to part.

By the time the sun set and it was already dark, Judith was asleep, leaving the two of them alone to finally talk without having to worry about holding anything back.

"How did you get out?" Carol asked softly, her hand running up his strong bicep. They were now lying on the makeshift bed she had made for herself out of blankets when they first came across the cabin, staring at the ceiling above them and listening to each other's breathing.

"Got shot," Daryl answered simply. He shrugged when Carol twisted to look at him with wide eyes, reaching for his shirt and pulling it up to reveal the remnants of a bullet hole on his side. "Blacked out, made those bastards think I was dead. When I woke up, it was rainin', and I was alone. Walkers everywhere. Don't know how I got out. 'S all a haze. Jus' remember finding a cave and staying there a while. Removed the bullet, made sure it didn't get infected, then got the hell outta there. Didn't want anyone ta find me. Found another cave … few weeks later. Stayed there for a while. Then I found ya."

"Oh, Daryl," Carol breathed out. She let her fingers brush over the scar, which made Daryl flinch ever so slightly. Clearly, this was much harder for him than he let on. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there with you. I could've helped."

"'S good you wasn't there with me," the man said. "The father you were, the better. I would've waited longer if it meant that you were safe." He paused to kiss her gently before continuing. "We're here now, Carol. 'S all I care about."

"Since when did you get so poetic?" Carol joked, the tears still burning her eyes.

"Since I started lovin' you."

With a watery smile, Carol let out a laugh and leaned her head against his shoulder, breathing in his familiar scent. "Well, for the record, I love you too," she said, kissing his bare skin. "I love you so much, Daryl."

~TWD~

The next morning, Carol woke up in Daryl's familiar arms, feeling more refreshed than she had in a long time. She looked up at her sleeping companion, only to frown at the dark circles under his eyes.

"Stop starin', will ya?" the man muttered, startling Carol and making her smile.

How do you always know?" she asked with a kiss to his cheek.

"Jus' do," Daryl replied as he raised his hand to cup her face gently, studying her features intently. "Ya know how much I missed ya, right?"

"I know. And I missed you, too … Pookie." Carol laughed when Daryl rolled his eyes in annoyance. "What, you thought I forgot about that?" she teased.

"Maybe … a bit," Daryl confessed, resting his forehead against his own. "Nothin' wrong with hopin'." He finally kissed her, having already begun to miss her lips. He was just starting to lift up Carol's shirt when a sudden voice rang through the silence of the cabin.

"Uncle Da-wal! Auntie Ca-wal!"

A second later, Judith was sitting on Daryl's chest, smiling and giggling wildly.

"Hey, Lil' Asskicker," he said softly, feeling Carol nuzzle her face against his shoulder. "'S up?"

"I'm hungry!" the girl explained, basically jittering with fresh morning energy.

"Well, let's make you some food, then," Carol decided. She pressed a gentle kiss to his lips before getting out of their bed and heading over to the kitchen, where she began preparing some instant oatmeal - one of the few things she managed to take with her when Alexandria was being destroyed. She watched as Daryl took to playing with Judith while she cooked; she couldn't help but look at them every once in a while, admiring the beautiful picture in front of her. Daryl was just so good with kids. Even though he would never admit it, he had such a big knack for children, especially for Judith. It warmed her heart and brought a smile to her face every time.

Like the night before, they ate on the couch.

"'S good, Carol," Daryl praised with a peck on her lips. "Thanks." He paused and looked at Judith, who had already finished and was now playing with her toys. "Do you have anythin' to say to your Aunt, Lil' Asskicker?"

"Thank you, Auntie Ca-wal!" Judith cried.

Carol grinned, noticing how Daryl used the same tactic she had used yesterday.

"Think 'm gonna go on a hunt today," Daryl said after a couple minutes of just watching a certain blonde girl play. "Wanna start stockin' up. Wanna start buildin' a wall 'round the cabin for protection, too."

"That's a good idea," Carol agreed, wrapping an arm around his own and leaning against him. "When are you leaving?"

"Couple hours," Daryl replied. After receiving a small nod from Carol, they both fell silent, reveling in each other's company. Suddenly, Daryl had the urge to ask, "Did you search for her Rick and 'Chone?"

For a second, Carol was caught off guard. "I did," she said when she regained her composure. "After I found Judith, I spent a day looking for them, but found nothing."

"But ya didn't find any bodies?" Daryl questioned, a hint of hope lacing his words.

"No," Carol said. "So that might mean that they're still out there…"

"An' that 'm can still find 'em," the tracker finished, eyes shining with the possibility of locating his best friend and reuniting him and his wife with their kid. He kissed Carol out of pure happiness, pulling her against his chest and hugging her tighter.

"Ewwwww!"

They pulled away laughing at Judith's comment and smiled at one another.

"Might as well go now, right?" Daryl offered, feeling incredibly anxious to start looking for the two people - besides Carol - that he had developed so much love for.

"Stay safe, alright?" Carol warned, pulling him closer to give him one more kiss for luck.

"Nine lives, 'member?"

TBC


	2. Chapter Two:

**So sorry it took so long to update! I was being lazy XD. Anyway, so here is the next chapter. I'm kinda worried that this story is going a little fast, so it is, please tell me. I need the feedback.**

**Please, don't forget to favorite, follow, and review! Thank you for all the love so far! I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**-M**

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Chapter Two:

"What you thinking about, Pookie?"

Daryl grunted out of his thoughts and looked at Carol, who was pillowed on his chest and was currently running her fingers down his strong, muscular arms. "Nothin'."

"Liar," the woman said, a grin on her face. "I know that look. It's the 'I'm-thinking-about-something-awful-but-I'm-not-gonna-tell-anyone' look."

Chuckling, Daryl shook his head and kissed his companion. "Ya really wanna know?" When he saw the look Carol was giving him, he smiled and continued, "Jus' thinkin' 'bout the bastards that destroyed Alexandria. How we shoulda been more careful, ya know?"

Carol's grin slowly turned into a frown, and she sighed, reaching up to stroke his hair gently. "I know," she replied. "I thought about it, too, for that first week or so. We really shouldn't have let that group in. But we couldn't have known that they had a plan to take our home. We did what anyone else would've done. What happened happened."

"I know," Daryl replied with a nod. "Doesn't make it any easier."

"You're right."

Silence surrounded them for a few minutes, both of them lost in their own thoughts. Soon enough, their eyes fell on a sleeping Judith. The girl looked so peaceful lying on that couch and holding an old, battered stuffed animal by her chest.

"You know, I kind of envy her," Carol said, breaking the silence. When Daryl looked at her in confusion, she explained, "She's been through so much, but she still is this little ball of sunshine and rainbows. Sometimes, I wish I could be like that. Just forget all the bad and focus on everything good."

Daryl didn't reply. He couldn't. Not when what his companion was saying was true. He just couldn't find the words to argue with her on that. Finally, he settled on just switching the subject. "Ya did good with her. Raised her right since all've this happened."

"It was all Rick and Michonne," Carol argued. "They gave me a good foundation to work with, and I just made a few tweaks."

Scoffing, Daryl kissed her. "That's one way to put it," he muttered against her mouth. His arm traveled up to her waist, and his hand settled on her stomach, a sign they had made up years ago that told them whether or not they wanted sex. If Carol placed her own hand on top of his, then it would be a yes, but if she just moved Daryl's hand to wrap around her, then it would be a no.

Tonight, it was a yes.

Daryl couldn't help but silently thank God.

A couple hours later, towards sunrise, the two of them found each other in a sweaty heap in their old sleeping bag, sleepy from their recent activities. Carol was spooning against her man, drawing pictures with her finger on his chest. "That was … amazing," she whispered, a bright smile gracing her lips.

"The wait was worth it," Daryl replied, his voice husky. He pressed a quick kiss to her lips, different from all the heavy ones he'd been giving her during sex, and pulled her closer to him. "Now sleep. Lil' Asskicker's gonna wake up soon."

Carol didn't need to be told twice. She was exhausted, and fell asleep easily, her small hand in Daryl's big one.

Meanwhile, Daryl stayed awake, staring at the ceiling and allowing himself to start thinking again.

The hunt from the other morning was successful in terms of food, but not in terms of finding Rick and Michonne. He knew that he couldn't go all the way back to Alexandria and try the other direction, but he wondered if he should if the time came to it. He just had this feeling that they were somewhere around this area. It was a gut feeling, and Daryl was almost never wrong when it came to a gut feeling. It reminded him of a T.V. show he watched briefly of a government detective who's gut never failed him, even if it seemed it would.

On top of that, he began wondering about how he was going to start building a wall around their cabin. They needed protection, but such a big project involved more than just two people - two and a half if you counted Judith. He'd have to figure that out soon.

It was Judith that pulled him out of his own head this time by jumping on his chest and calling his name. He smirked and ruffled her hair gently before saying, "Mornin' to ya, too." Carol was now awake, too, resting her head on his chest and looking up at Judith with pure love in her eyes. It made Daryl happy to know that even though the girl wasn't her kid, Carol was willing to treat her like one. It meant that all her past experiences weren't stopping her from loving such a sweet child like Judith.

"Uncle Da-wal, can you tell me a story?!"

"What kind of story?"

"Any!"

Daryl looked to Carol, who shrugged and smiled. "Well, how 'bout I think of one an' then tell ya over breakfast? Deal?"

"Deal!" With that, the child ran off to her toys and began playing, clearly excited for the story her uncle was about to tell her.

Looking to Carol, the tracker shook his head. "Thanks for the help," he joked.

Carol only laughed and began getting up so she could make some food for them. When she finished, they all sat down on the couch to eat and listen to Daryl's crazy adventures.

"A'right, how 'bout this one…," Daryl began. "It was how your daddy and I first met." Just before he fully started, he locked eyes with Carol, silently asking for approval.

Her nod told her that this was going to be a story they would all enjoy.

~TWD~

A week later, Daryl was walking inside the cabin, only to find Carol and Judith tied up by the couch with terrified looks on their faces. Before he had any chance to react, he was shoved against a wall and stripped of any weapons. In that moment, he wished that looks could kill.

"You move, and we'll kill both of them," the man in front of him growled. "Slowly."

"You touch either of them, and I'll kill you all," Daryl growled back, struggling against the arms holding him back.

"Just take whatever you want and leave," Carol offered, a hint of fear lacing her words. Only Daryl knew that tone; it told him that she was more scared than she was letting on. "We won't try to follow or try to follow you. Just leave us be. Please, we have a child."

"That's not what we came for," the leader of the group - who was leaning casually against the front door, ready to watch whatever was about to go down - explained, a sadistic smile on his face. "We're planning on making sure you suffer here, and then make you suffer some more when we take you to our home."

For a brief second, Daryl caught Carol's eyes and nodded reassuringly, right before he felt a knee slam against his ribs. He grunted, throwing his head back as he was hit again.

And again.

And again.

Carol was desperately screaming his name, holding onto Judith so that she wouldn't have to see her uncle getting beaten. At one point, she, too, closed her eyes, flinching at every sound of pain that escaped Daryl's mouth. She even started praying to whatever god that was still up there, begging him to spare Daryl.

Thankfully, her prayers were answered. For the moment, at least.

Soon enough, the leader seemed to have enough. He signaled his men, who were quick to take out chains and started closing in on all three of their brand new prisoners.

Once they were all shackled, they were forced out of their home and into a truck. The minute the doors were shut behind them, Daryl scrambled to his girls, ignoring the pain in his ribs. "You two a'right?" he asked softly, and locked eyes with Carol.

"Shaken, but unharmed," the woman replied, reaching up with her bound hand to brush some of his hair out of his eyes. "You're the one that's hurt."

"'M fine," Daryl assured her, looking down at a trembling Judith. "Hey, sweetheart," he murmured, beginning to stroke her blonde locks while Carol held her. "'M sorry I scared ya. But you're okay now. Your auntie an' I will keep ya safe. Promise." When the child nodded, he sat beside Carol and gathered them both in his arms, with Carol leaning against his chest and Judith leaning against hers.

Within thirty-or-so minutes, Judith was asleep, which gave Daryl and Carol the perfect opportunity to talk.

"Where do you think they're taking us?" Carol wondered worriedly, feeling his fingers gently caressing her knuckles for comfort.

"No idea," Daryl said, pressing a quick kiss to her temple. "But it doesn't matter. 'M gonna get us outta this … whatever the hell _this_ is."

"How are you going to do that when you're injured?"

Daryl sighed and kissed her again. "Don't worry 'bout that, Carol. I'll keep you and Lil' Asskicker safe."

"I know you will," Carol breathed out. "I know you will."

"Jus' get some sleep. 'M gonna be right here."

Hours passed, and they were still driving. It seemed that the van was never going to stop.

While Carol and Judith got some much needed shut-eyes, Daryl stared at the small window in front of him, watching the trees fly by. Thoughts raced through his head, making him bite the skin around his thumbnail until it bled. In truth, he had no idea how he was going to get them out of this mess. He knew that he couldn't do anything would endanger the two most important people in his seemingly cursed life. Daryl felt so damn angry at himself; he should've been more alert. Instead, he got them captured, and now they were being driven to an unknown location, where anything could happen to them.

Just the idea of one of his girls getting hurt brought shivers up Daryl's spine.

At one point, it began to rain, the sound of raindrops pattering against the vehicles waking Carol up.

"We're still driving?" she said softly, so that udith wouldn't hear them.

"Still drivin'," Daryl echoed in return.

"They have to stop somewhere for gas, right?"

"They will," the hunter agreed. He watched Carol stroke Judith's back, his heart aching with guilt.

How're you holdin' up?"

"I don't know," Carol said truthfully, taking a moment to rub at her sore, bruised wrists. "I guess I'm just dreading what's about to happen to us."

"Nothin's gonna happen to either of ya. I'll make sure of it."

Suddenly, Carol began to laugh, covering her mouth in an attempt to keep quiet.

"What'sa matter?" Daryl asked, clearly confused.

"It's just funny," the woman managed to say through her giggles, "that stuff like this seems to keep happening to us. Over and over again."

Daryl chose not reply.

It was true.

After what seemed like an eternity, the vehicle finally stopped, and a few minutes later, the doors were open. Men stepped in and pulled the three of them out, roughly shoving them forward. Daryl quickly realized that this was some kind of community.

They were led to an underground prison of sorts. There big cells on every side that held rather large of coughing people, from what Daryl could tell. Without given any chance to make sense of everything, the three of them were forced inside a prison cell, the door heavily shut behind them.

Just like he did back in the truck, Daryl rushed over to Judith and gathered her into his arms, feeling Carol joining him by the wall. "Judith, ya alright?"

"Judith?"

Carol and Daryl both froze at the familiar, raspy voice. Somehow, Daryl managed to stand up and look to the left, gasping at the even more familiar shadow. "Rick?" he managed to whisper, eyes wide and filled with unshed tears.

Finally, the man came into the light, his own eyes just as big as Daryl's. "Brother," he breathed out, already crying.

It was then that _everything_ changed.

TBC


	3. Chapter Three:

**So I kinda like this chapter but I kinda don't. I still don't know if I'm going a little bit too fast. Please let me know if I am and I will try to fix that. **

**In the meantime, please enjoy! And don't forget to favorite, follow, and review. Thank you for all the wonderful feedback you've been giving me so far. I really appreciate it. **

**-M**

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Chapter Three:

"Daddy!"

Daryl watched as Judith ran to her father, who picked her up and spun her around, a bright smile on his face. He gasped when he saw Michonne come out from the shadows and join her husband, both of them crying at the site of their little girl.

When the reunion was finished, the couple made their way over to Carol and Daryl. Rick immediately pulled his brother into a tight hug, the men trembling with shock and relief. "How are you here?" the former sheriff asked, disbelief lacing his words. "How is Judith with you?"

"I don't know, man," Daryl replied truthfully, pulling away to look at Carol. "I don't know."

After they finished greeting at each other and marveling at the fact that this was actually real, they sat down on the cold ground and began to talk. It was then that Daryl noticed the wounds mottling Rick and Michonne's bodies. "Where did you get these?" he muttered, worry beginning to seep into his stomach.

Rick sighed. "It's a fight club, Daryl," he explained. "And every person her, in these cells, is part of the main event."

"How long have you been here?" Carol questioned as she interlocked her and Daryl's fingers together.

"From what we can tell, a month," Michonne replied, sounding exhausted. "After we left Alexandria, we searched for survivors, but didn't find anyone. We traveled for a few months, but then were captured by these people."

"Why are they keeping kids here?" Carol's eyes fell on the child resting in her mother's arms. She had seen other kids in some of the nearby cells. They didn't look hurt, but they sure looked terrified, clearly worried for their parents and what was going to happen to them.

"They don't touch kids," Rick said, "but they don't treat them any differently, either. We get food and water every two days, and fresh air every time we go out to fight. Every once in a while, if they see that the fighters are really hurt, they give out medical supplies."

Daryl nodded in understanding, already beginning to process all the information Rick and Michonne had given him. He looked at Carol, noted the fear written all across her face, and pressed a quick kiss to her temple, pulling her close. "Is there any way to break out?"

"Some people have tried," Michonne said. "But each time, they were caught and killed. We were thinking of trying … But now that you're here, and Judith is with us … We don't want to risk anything."

"Ya shouldn't," Daryl quickly said. "Ya have a kid to take care of now. You're gonna have to keep yourselves as safe as possible."

"I know," Rick agreed, reaching down to stroke his daughter's curly locks.

"Just get some rest for now," Carol offered. "We'll keep watch." She was incredibly grateful when they obeyed, the two of them falling asleep in seconds. Letting out a heavy breath, the greying woman placed her hand on her companion's chest. "Daryl, how are we going to get out of this?"

"God, Carol, I wish I knew."

His answer truly surprised her. Carol locked eyes with Daryl and attempted to smile, albeit weakly. "Well, that's a first," she whispered, leaning in to kiss him gently. She was grateful when he returned it, his arms wrapping around her slim waist.

"I'll figure something out," Daryl murmured in her ear. "I have to."

"Sleep. Don't think about it right now. You need to save as much energy as you possibly can."

Daryl exhaled and then nodded, taking a moment to rest his forehead against her own. "I love ya, ya know that?"

"I know. And I love you more."

"Not possible."

While Carol slept, Daryl didn't allow himself to even close his eyes. He was dead set on making sure that his people weren't going to be hurt in any way. So when he heard the sound of footsteps, he immediately moved Carol off of him and stood up, just as two guards unlocked the door and came in.

"Put your hands on your head and don't move," one of them said, thankfully not paying attention to the other prisoners in the cell. Apparently, they only need one fighter for the moment.

Daryl obeyed, staring straight at the ground while they chained his ankles and wrists and attached a long pole to the ones wrapping around his hands. He spared a final glance at the love of his life, memorizing every single feature on her face before he was forced out of the room. He was led down the same long hallway he had walked through only a few hours before. Nothing had changed. Daryl locked eyes with multiple other prisoners, and they all looked the same: terrified. He wondered if that was about to become his fate.

The warm sun blinded him, and in that moment he wished that he could just raise his arms and shield his eyes, but the men didn't even give him a chance to do it. After about five minutes of walking on the outside of the community, they arrived at a huge fighting ring. There were people crowded around the fence separating them and the arena, cheering and screaming, clearly ready to watch a fight.

It took a lot for Daryl not to attempt to escape. He wanted to see what their options were before risking their lives. He was shoved through a door and into a small room full of more prisoners. Daryl quickly realized that these were going to be the men and women that he would have to fight.

They let him sit on one of the benches, and he watched as two men were forced to stand up and move towards another exit, which no doubt led to the ring. Daryl took these few moments of silence to collect himself. He closed his eyes and began to channel his breathing, thinking of nothing and no one, not even Carol.

He barely even realized how much time had passed. In what seemed like seconds, he was pulled up by his wrists and pulled to that same exit from earlier. He was suddenly standing right outside a huge arena, which looked even bigger now that he was in it.

Daryl's eye caught his opponent. He looked to be about fifty, and was almost twice the size of Daryl. Guess these people don't care for fair matches, the tracker though wearily, already beginning to study him and look for any weaknesses he could possibly use. He found nothing.

He was brought over to the other side of the ring, while the other man stayed. Once he was in position, the gate was opened, all of his chains were taken off, and, without warning, he was pushed inside, the door shut behind him.

Daryl now found himself standing in front of his opponent, understanding that this wasn't his first match. In fact, it seemed like this stranger had been in many fights, based on how many wounds he was sporting, both old and new. On top of that, he looked ready to kill, a sign that told Daryl that he'd have to be more careful and much more brutal with his attacks.

The minute the crowd started cheering, the man - Daryl decided to call him Hulk because of his build - charged straight at Daryl. There was no sign of remorse or sadness in his eyes. Daryl was quick to dodge him, deciding to let him make the first couple of moves.

Hulk seemed to grow angrier the more Daryl dodged, clearly wanting to get this fight over with. At one point, he'd almost caught Daryl but, the hunter quickly escaped his beefy hands, to which he responded with an animalistic cry. Without giving Daryl and time to react, Hulk grabbed him by the wrist and shoved him to the ground, landing a precise hit to Daryl's shoulder.

The crowd and Daryl both roared at the same time.

Only Daryl's roar was more of a pained cry, for his shoulder had just been dislocated. Still, he wasted no time in punching Hulk right in the face and pushing the man off of him with his legs, scrambling to his feet. He could see that Hulk was getting more and more angry by the second, and knew that he had to do something fast. When Hulk began to run at him again, Daryl reached down and grabbed the sand beneath his feet, throwing it right into Hulk's eyes, almost smiling when he screamed. He didn't expect for hulk to recover so quickly and pummel him to the ground again, this time beginning to hit him all over his body.

For a moment, Daryl was lost, unsure of what to do. It was like all his senses had left him, and he was now stuck in between reality. But when he finally came back to the real world and realized what was happening, Daryl growled and caught Hulk in a chokehold with his legs, pressing down as hard as he could, even as Hulk struggled.

It took a while, but Daryl succeeded in bringing his opponent down. The minute Hulk went slack, Daryl shoved him aside and pushed himself back, hearing the people watching yell and scream.

Clearly, he was the victor of this match.

He barely noticed as the same guards from before walked inside the arena and chained him again. He only regained some sense of where he was when he heard a gunshot, the sound making him jump. Looking back, he saw that Hulk now had a bullet in his brain, and he was being dragged out of the ring, never to be seen again. Daryl muttered a weak apology and let himself be led back to his cell.

In what felt like an eternity, they finally made it. He was unchained - thank God - and shoved back inside, where Carol had been waiting, pacing like crazy until her eyes fell on Daryl.

"Oh, my God, Daryl," she whispered, running over to him as he began to collapse. She caught him and gently helped him to the ground, where she began accessing his wounds.

"Is he alright?" Michonne asked worriedly, kneeling down beside Carol.

"I don't know…"

"Shoulder's … dislocated," Daryl managed to say, feeling incredibly exhausted all of a sudden. "Few bruises. Otherwise fine. J-just tired."

"That must have been one of the older fighters," Rick said from nearby. He was cradling a sleeping Judith in his lap, and didn't want to wake her by moving. "I've seen him around. Always tries to dislocate his opponent's shoulder before doing anything else."

"'M called him Hulk," Daryl breathed out, wincing as Carol began to touch his shoulder. "Good fighter. S-sad I had to kill him…"

"I'm going to pop it back in, okay Daryl?" Carol asked, using her free hand to stroke his sweat dampened hair gently.

"Yeah … g-go ahead."

It took all his energy not to scream when Carol pushed his shoulder back into place. For Judith's sake, all he did was grunt and curl up into a loose ball, closing his eyes in an attempt to fight off the pain.

"I can't do anything about your other wounds," Carol said sadly. "They'll have to heal on their own. For now, you need to get as much sleep as you can." When her companion nodded, she began sat against a wall and helped him pillow his head on her lap. She leaned down to kiss the top of his head before saying, "Sleep. You deserve it."

"Thanks, C-Carol…," Daryl mumbled, already feeling better because of the hand running through his long locks.

With that final thought, he fell asleep, feeling more exhausted than ever, even though this had been his first fight.

He wondered what else was in store for him and the rest of his family.

TBC


End file.
